Tag Archives: pandemic

June 12, 2013 · 7:09 pm

Finding a little inspiration…

to start a new novel.

You’d think that starting novel number six wouldn’t be a big deal. It’s always a big deal, and frankly, I find myself more than a little nervous as I type the title on the page, make sure it’s centered and STARE at the screen for an indeterminable amount of time. The first words are always the most difficult for me, compounded by the fact that those words commit me to a minimum of three straight months of writing.

I wrote the first 420 words to The Perseid Collapse this morning, sitting at a desk in a hotel room. Not exactly where I would choose to start such an important undertaking, but my day job requires these things, and I write everyday no matter where I find myself…even a lonely hotel room. No, it wasn’t someplace fancy or scenic. As a matter of fact, it was within sight of both a mall and the Maine Turnpike.

But it was in Bangor, less than eight minutes (as measured by my iPhone’s mapping software) from my favorite author’s house.

photo

 

I’ve been to Bangor several times over the past few months for work, but I’ve purposely avoided West Broadway. I’ve driven by it and struggled not to turn. Why? Because I wanted the context of seeing Stephen King’s house to be special. Seeing it on the same morning that I typed the first words of my sequel to The Jakarta Pandemic qualified, so I made the turn off Union Street and parked in front of his house long enough to take a few pictures. It was all I needed to round off a perfect morning…almost perfect. I forgot to bring the power cord for my Mac Air on the trip, and found myself with 46% power upon waking at “zero dark thirty.” 420 words was all I could write before the computer basically told me to save my document and find something else to do.

 

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May 19, 2013 · 6:28 am

Interviewed by Practical Tactical

INTERVIEW with STEVEN KONKOLY

I was recently interviewed by Randy Powers, creator of Practical Tactical, a prepper based  blog focused on passing “practical” information on a wide variety of survival, prepper and every day situational awareness. His collections of interviews and articles is diverse, entertaining and not what you’d expect. One in particular was eye-opening and education. Al Bartlett’s talk on Arithmetic, Population and Energy. Read the article once and you’ll become smarter. Read it twice and you’ll surpass 99.9% of the population in terms of understanding statistics…very practical statistics, and how you can apply them to debunk much of the nonsense you hear on the television today. Al Bartlett’s Talk.

 

As always, I digress a bit. Randy’s interview was by far the most comprehensive to this date, showing an in-depth analysis of The Jakarta Pandemic and the situations the unraveled throughout the story. Since initial publication, The Jakarta Pandemic has reached over 50,000 readers. The most common theme brought up by readers in reviews or emails is that the story made them think about their own situation in a similar crisis. Randy really took this to a higher level in his interview, cherry picking what he interpreted to be the most important lessons for readers and asking me to expand on my thought process while creating specific scenes or characters.

Enjoy the interview and by all means check out Randy’s posts and articles. If you have any questions at all about home defense, prepping, self defense…whatever you can think of in this arena, don’t hesitate to get in touch with Randy. He is a wealth of information.

INTERVIEW with STEVEN KONKOLY 

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July 19, 2012 · 3:26 pm

The Jakarta Pandemic earns 200th Customer Review on Amazon…

and the statistics remain the same.

One reader out of five would trip me in the grocery store aisle if they got the chance. Of course, if they read Black Flagged, the last place they would ever consider accosting me, would be a grocery store…especially Whole Foods.

See the full spread here : 200 Reviews

All kidding aside, I anticipated “number 200″ to be one of the “beauties” that seem to come up out of nowhere to put balance back into my life and remind me that it is impossible to write a story that everybody will like, nor should you try. 

I’ve developed a thicker skin since publishing my first book in the fall of 2010, and learned some hard lessons about writing in a genre that can be politically polarized. Especially if you throw the occasional dig in either political direction. Hands down, the conservatives were the most sensitive, though I did have liberals weigh in on the protagonist’s actions as well. In celebration of my “200th review” being a positive review, I’m sharing the top ten negative comments “earned” over the past 20 months. To be fair, I won’t add any commentary.

1. “I tried to finish the book hoping there will be a shocking,exciting climax and revelation towards the end but was I utterly disappointed when I finished the book feeling empty.Is this a love story or what??It is so cheesy with the main character and his wife that it makes you sick reading it.How many times do I have to read how much they love each other?seriously once should be enough.I read his first book Black flagged that’s why I decided to read this next one but I can’t believe it’s written by the same writer.” 

2. “The lead character is an arrogant know-it-all. He treated his parents and brother with impatience and superiority because they got their info from FOX News (gasp)!”

3.  ”I won’t discuss the liberal social bias of the characters other than to say it was a point of distraction, but perhaps they were intended to be social liberals. There was nothing about the main character or his wife that I liked, and the kids were just wooden props. “Ward and June Cleaver Versus the Virus” could have been a fitting title, based on their 50′s era mind-set, yuppie opinions and “better-than-thou” attitudes. By the time I reached the halfway point of the book, I was rooting for the virus!”

4. “I got about one third the way through and gave up. I rarely give up. I am astounded by the positive reviews. It makes me wonder if any of these reviewers are literate. To put it in a nutshell this book really stinks. You feel like you might lose IQ points if you persist in reading it. Please people for you own sakes don’t expose your brains to this drivel.”

5. “It’s a book written by someone who has no idea of what a real, independant-minded, ex-military man or woman is, and it’s beyond the bounds of my credibilty–as developed by my own military background, current law enforcement and survivalist mentality–that a man with his stated credentials, who has so much to lose and so many weapons and other resources could be such a milksop. I ran some of his scenarios across a female Army Infantry vet coworker and she was disgusted by his behavior. I’m beginning to suspect “Steven” may be a pen name for “Stevie” or “Stephanie”

6. “I’m sorry, but this whole theme of “liberal Marine” just didn’t sit well with me, and was completely unrealistic. However, if you are in the less than 20% of the people in this country who call yourselves liberal, you will probably love it.”

7. “I really like the subject matter and the story idea. I just couldn’t get very far because this book is replete with the usage of the Lord’s name taken in vain along with substantial foul language.”

8. “The author’s blurb describes the “Islamic Republic of Indonesia.” There *is no* “Islamic Republic of Indonesia.” That tells you all you need to know about the author’s bias. Only thing missing from this book is a forward by Newt Gingrich or Glenn Beck. If an author can’t get the name of a country right (it wasn’t a “mistake,” BTW), what else did he “not get right”?

9. “Don’t like the “hero” — he is mouthy and antagonistic, aside from being a thief. Needlessly provokes confrontations right from the beginning. Pretty much brags about being prepped while others did not or could not prep, which of course will guarantee resentment, plus he did not train his family. He makes several stupid mistakes and sets himself up for getting killed — and getting his obnoxious family killed.”

10. “not much there not really good he spends to much time dising fox news and not enough time getting a story that is less tan boring”

I eagerly await number 201. Statistically, if I had to bet…I’d bet on a bad one! 

UPDATE: I beat the odds. #201 was a Five Star Review. My glass is half full again!

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June 14, 2012 · 6:03 am

The Jakarta Pandemic’s LOST SCENES

Actually, they were never really lost. I cut 60,ooo words from the first draft on purpose…to save you from reading a 200,000 word novel. Think Stephen King’s THE STAND length.

21 months after The Jakarta Pandemic’s launch, I have brought about 30,000 words back to life in a re-release. I reformatted and added this material to the end of my book as bonus material. Of course, I don’t expect previous readers to buy the new version. You can download the material right here: BONUS MATERIAL PDF or BONUS  MATERIAL MS Word

What made me decide to resurrect this material? Reading The Thin White Line by Craig DiLouie.

I’ll explain. Most of the material cut from my novel consisted of imbedded news reports, television interviews and radio show segments. Since the story is told solely from the main character’s point of view, there is no omniscient presentation of information about the world pandemic situation. The reader learns about the pandemic through Alex Fletcher eyes and ears. Since I did a ton of research for the novel, I was over eager to “share” volumes of this information with my audience. Not the best idea when you are trying to move a story along and maintain tension. The virtual editing floor was littered with cuts made on the reader’s behalf.

Craig DiLouie’s self-published book, The Thin White Line, is a painstakingly researched, fictional account of an avian flu pandemic in 2012. Presented on a more clinical scale than The Jakarta Pandemic, he tells the story from multiple perspectives within a beleaguered healthcare system and collapsing civil structure. He masterfully details every academic aspect that I cut from The Jakarta Pandemic and more. Way more. Read together, I believe The Thin White Line and The Jakarta Pandemic redefine pandemic fiction.

To complete the ultimate pandemic experience:  Check out The Thin White Line at Craig’s website.

YOU CAN DOWNLOAD IT FREE! for now, so don’t miss out on this great opportunity.

For those of you unfamiliar with Craig DiLouie’s work, he is a well established writer within the apocalyptic horror genre, featuring several wildly popular titles, including Tooth and Nail (which I reviewed on this blog) and Infection. His most recent work, The Killing Floor (a continuation of Infection) was just released by Permuted Press to an eager fan base.

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June 13, 2012 · 8:51 pm

Have you “heard” about the imminent Pandemic…

AUDIOBOOK?

The Jakarta Pandemic? What’s that? Admittedly, my first novel has been flying on autopilot for several months now. I haven’t done much to support the book, beyond track sales, answer reader emails (which keeps me busy…believe me) and respond to a few Amazon reviews (I know, according to the “writing” world, I’m not supposed to do that, and I pretty much abide by that rule).

So, it’s with great pleasure that I announce the release of The Jakarta Pandemic in audiobook format.

Professionally produced by Gregg Savage of Sunny Day Audiobooks, and masterfully narrated by Joseph Morton, the final product is a brilliant rendition of The Jakarta Pandemic. I’m listening to it in my car, and there is something truly incredible about hearing the story brought to life.

I want to extend a special thanks to Gregg, for reaching out to me with the offer to produce the audiobook. In all reality, my role in the process was to simply provide the manuscript and wait. A worthwhile wait for sure.

THE JAKARTA PANDEMIC AUDIOBOOK at Amazon.

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June 3, 2012 · 3:16 pm

Review of Craig DiLouie’s TOOTH AND NAIL

I re-read most of Tooth and Nail over Memorial Day weekend. Oddly enough, aside from Black Hawk Down or Band of Brothers (or many more great military non-fiction reads), I couldn’t think of a more appropriate book to read. You’ll find out why in the review below. I read this book in pieces earlier this year, mainly trying to fit in time to read a compelling story between writing my third novel. I don’t get much personal reading done while deeply engaged in a project.

I was motivated to re-read Craig DiLouie‘s story following an announcement he made regarding the re-release of a pandemic story he had self-published prior to writing Tooth and Nail. I’m really glad I did, because I got so much more out of the story reading it in a few days. Simply an incredible story…reader discretion advised.

“Tooth and Nail is one of the most immersive experiences you can find as a fan of apocalyptic fiction. As a former military officer, I can attest to complexity and uncertainty of the difficult decisions faced by second lieutenant Todd Bowman and his men, as they encountered an increasingly deadly and nebulous viral threat on the streets of Manhattan. The buildup of tension, confusion and violence was expertly drawn from start to finish. Each soldier’s role in the story is examined and expanded through gritty action, well constructed conversation and personal narrative introspection. Although DiLouie’s story leans heavily on brutal action, which becomes a necessary way of life for the platoon, he takes the time to explore the bonds that strengthen this small community of warriors as they try to carry out their orders and makes sense of the madness that has descended on the world. This is one of the most realistic fictional representations of platoon interaction that I have read in this genre.

Beyond military realism is a well developed scientific scenario that gives you a break from the intense military action. I recently saw that the author re-released one of his previous works, called The Thin White Line, which is a research based, fictional account of an avian flu pandemic. I was not surprised to find out that he had started working on Tooth and Nail soon after publishing this work. The exhaustive research in The Thin White Line played out beautifully in Tooth and Nail, adding yet another layer of realism. This aspect is delivered in the form of a parallel, yet crucial side story about several virologists trapped nearby in a secure research facility. I appreciated the dichotomy of these two worlds: [Brute strength, flexible/quick decisionmaking and firepower] Vs. [Scholarly intellect, detailed research and organized thought] AGAINST the same enemy. Watching the two merge in this story is a bonus.

DiLouie’s story has been called Black Hawk Down meets 28 Days Later. I agree, but would add elements of Zulu Dawn and 300 Spartans to that list. What starts out as a relatively simple operations for 2LT Bowman’s platoon turns into an epic battle for survival, with more than just his platoon’s fate at stake.”

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December 13, 2011 · 12:19 pm

Interview by Book Reviewer and Blogger Extraordinaire…”Cookie’s Mom” (aka Sue)

As I warm to the concept of being interviewed, I find myself opening up and revealing more of the secrets behind my writing. Not really. I’m warming up to the process, but still wish I had some cool dark secret that kept me pounding away on the keyboard at 4:30 in the morning…something to explain the headaches and the voices…JUST KIDDING! With each interview, I’m forced to give more thought to the process of writing and the factors influencing the stories…so I uncover some pretty interesting connections that might have gone undiscovered otherwise.

Take a look at my latest interview at Cookie’s Book Club…and check out her giveaway contest. I can’t think of a better Christmas present…for you or someone else, than a set of my books, signed for me by my son. I’m too busy now to sign books. ANOTHER BAD JOKE. Seriously, you can win a signed set of my books at her Book Club Blog.

Cookie’s Book Club Interview with Steven Konkoly and Review of The Jakarta Pandemic

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October 10, 2011 · 7:37 am

Find a Niche, and Expand It

In today’s fiction market, you either need a sizable backlist, a ready-to-go fan base, or a traditional publishing deal to come out of the gate bursting with sales. Your Twitter following of 800 other authors doesn’t count as a launching pad, either. The most common problem for new authors, is the search for readership. Unless you’re writing to fill your own bookshelf, you share the same dilemma. I know…we all have an incredibly interesting, unique novel, ready to unleash upon the unsuspecting world…but so does every other writer reading this essay. And this is just the tip of the iceberg! The key term here, is “unsuspecting world.” I’m fairly confident the world will push onward in blissful ignorance of your book, if you don’t find a way to start a small fire. You need to find a niche, and expand it.

I’ll be blunt with my story. I published The Jakarta Pandemic in October of 2010, and had no clue what to do with it. I was just glad to have finished it. Three years of disorganized part time writing, and now what? I had no marketing plan…or concept. I had started research into the traditional publishing world, but quickly came to the conclusion that this would be a long process. Fine, except it bothered me that friends and family couldn’t read the culmination of three years’ effort, and might never read it, if I waited for a New York deal. So, I uploaded my book to Kindle, Nook and CreateSpace…and made the big announcement to friends and family.

I had a modest burst of sales in October and November, which tapered off as I exhausted my supply of friends and family (thank you for the support!). A few reviews on Amazon followed (I recognized the names…thank you again!), and then it all fizzled. To be honest, I didn’t expect anything different. I started writing query letters to literary agents, but felt dirty each time I wrote that little personal note in there…you know, the one that lets the agent know that you did about two minutes of “in-depth” research into their background. I wrote seven queries (5 e-mail and 2 paper) before I read Joe Konrath’s blog, and said “screw this.”

Something very fortuitous occurred around the same time. Previously, I had decided to classify my book as a thriller (accurate), and weakly pursued the thriller market on a few web forums. If you haven’t figured it out, there are a lot of thrillers out there. Labeling your book a thriller is like selling grass seed and advertising the color. No shit, it’s green. No shit, you wrote a “thriller.” But I was a first time author, new to the writing world, and thrillers always top the best seller lists. Dominate the lists, actually. My wife showed me an article that proved it.

So, what knocked me out of this “thriller” silo? I received a 5-Star review from someone that lauded the survivalist aspect of my novel. He liked the thriller aspect of the book too, and said “move over Robert Ludlum.” Over the top for sure, but I could tell that the survivalist aspects struck home the most with this reader. My book does have a strong survivalist and prepper theme, so I started to wonder what I could do with this. I did a little research into the survivalist community.

I found one particular forum that dealt exclusively with survival prepping and related topics. They had a lively fiction/story-telling thread, so I joined the forum, introduced myself, and committed to releasing my entire novel (one chapter at a time). I was warmly welcomed, and kept my word over the next four to five months. Many readers couldn’t wait for the next installment, and purchased hard copies or e-books. Reviews poured in, and the book started picking up steam on Amazon. Of course, I made sure that the search terms reflected survival, so other like-minded readers could easily find it. I had found my first niche. My book’s thread is still in the top ten viewed story threads on this site.

As my Amazon ranking climbed (modestly), I started to pick up more readers, from a wider spectrum. Out of nowhere, I was contacted by another author, to participate in a Post-Apocalyptic (PA) blog tour. Uh…I suppose so…never really thought of my book in this genre. Really? A book about a devastating pandemic? WTF was I thinking. I eagerly agreed, and started joining PA forums everywhere. Unbelievable. These were truly my people, for this book. A dedicated crew, like the survivalist/prepper group, Post-Apocalyptic readers devour everything written in the genre. I started this in mid-February, and pushed heavy through March. It is no coincidence that my sales jumped from 160 in January, to 645 in February…to 1400 in March. My Amazon ranking (overall Kindle store) dipped into the 800′s. The good old days. I had really found my true niche, and a supportive group of hard core readers.

I have a new book launching in late October, and I can’t wait to see how the two will synergistically work together. I don’t have thousands of readers eagerly waiting by their Kindles for this book, but I do have a sizable core of ready readers that will immediately buy it, and probably review it. There are also over 9000 people (total downloads) out there, who have read my work, and might look me up again, when they’re searching for something to read this fall. Now I just need to work on a niche to go with my “backlist,” and give prospective readers a reason to gravitate toward the Black Flagged series.

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August 7, 2011 · 7:28 am

The Jakarta Pandemic #samplesunday giveaway


All of my samples so far have focused on my upcoming novel, Black Flagged, leaving my first novel, The Jakarta Pandemic,with abandonment issues. To remedy this, I added a sample to the “samples” link box, or you can find it here:

Jakarta Pandemic Sample

Thanks everyone, and have a happy #samplesunday

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August 2, 2011 · 6:29 am

“Your’re gonna need a bigger boat”

And I’m not talking about trading in my Sabre 28′ for a Pearson 34′…though an  extra six feet would make all of the difference on our two-week trip up the Maine coast. Always a thought I suppose.

No, I’m talking about one of the greatest lines in movie history, delivered flawlessly by a terrified Roy Scheider. Oh, it’s such an awesome scene! Take a few seconds to refresh your memory. It’s a classic, from a timeless film: “You’re gonna need a bigger boat.”

Timeless, because every year we try to sit down and watch this movie as a family, and every year we get about twenty minutes in before pulling the plug on the idea. It has become a family tradition during Shark Week...to almost watch Jaws. We usually pass on St. Patty’s Day, forget Cinco De Mayo, lazily throw out plastic eggs at the last-minute for Easter, and this year as you know, we bagged on the Fourth of July fireworks. But we never miss Shark Week!

I can’t remember how old I was when I first saw Jaws, but I can confidently say that it scared the shit out of me. The movie did, but the whole fear of sharks on open water never took root…until much later in life. I grew up in northwest Indiana, and saw the beach maybe four times a year. Lake Michigan. No sharks in fresh water, so I never really connected with this fear. My wife grew up in Buffalo, and probably had the same experience. Terrifying movie, but who cares really? Right?

I started to develop a fear of the open water during my brief stint in SEAL training, at the BUD/S compound in Coronado. More specifically, during open ocean training. I remember paddling exhausted, well past the surf line, and seeing a four-foot long shark break the surface right next to our rubber boat. It panicked four sturdy SEAL students, including myself, in broad daylight. I remember saying to myself something along the lines of “Son of a bitch! We swim out here too!” From that point forward, I wasn’t very keen on the idea of swimming off the Coronado beaches as a BUD/S trainee, I didn’t even like splashing around inside of the surf line. Remember what you learned watching Jaws! Most attacks occur in under two feet of water, less than ten feet from the shoreline. I think I’ve heard this fact reinforced on The Today Show, so it must be true.

I sat down yesterday, with a little spare time on my hands to finish this blog post. Nobody was home, so I put Jaws back on. I didn’t get much writing done. I love that movie. The characters are fantastic, the music is unforgettable…the whole concept is sheer genius. I never really payed too much attention to the setting until yesterday, and now I know why my wife gave me “the look” Sunday night, as we started watching. The opening scene is scary enough, but it wasn’t until a little later that we both had that gut reaction to turn the movie off. I finally know why.

The setting looked way too close to the places we visit in our sail boat! Holy crap they look the same.

Quaint islands and seaside towns. Calm, uncrowded beaches…the beach at Amity Island looked like any of the beaches we visit within 5 minutes of our house. We decided that if we ever want the kids to jump off the side of our sailboat into strange waters, this was not the best movie to show them. To confirm out decision, nobody put up a fight…and these kids can fight if they don’t agree.

I took theses pictures at various stops. You might recognize them. My daughter is in the water at Diamond Cove, a popular island stop not too far from our marina. These are the memories I’d like the kids to have. Fun in the water. Let me worry about the sharks…and I worry, you should see how fast I get out after diving headfirst into the water to cool off. Irrational, but I’ve seen Jaws too many times.

In case anyone is interested, our next family movie is Poltergeist…another classic! I’m actually not kidding.  Maybe they won’t want to watch TV after seeing it…can’t be a bad thing, right? “There here.” I can’t wait…and I’ll never go in the basement again. Damn these movies!

These blogs are all about fun and sharing. Thank you for reading a ‘#100blogfest’ blog. Please follow this link to find the next blog in the series:
http://martinkingauthor.com/blog/7094550076

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